Abstract Rationale Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is becoming increasingly recognized as an essential diagnostic tool in internal medicine, especially in pulmonary pathology. Early training in lung ultrasound (LUS) may contribute to more robust diagnostic skills with higher accuracy alongside increased clinical confidence among residents. A structured LUS training has not yet been incorporated into residency curricula, and data assessing short and medium term effect is limited. Methods A prospective, single-group educational study was conducted at a tertiary academic center between February 2025 and April 2025. Thirteen Internal Medicine residents attended a 2-hour session that combined a didactic covering lung anatomy, and normal and abnormal lung ultrasound findings, including A-lines, B-lines, pleural effusion, and pneumothorax, alongside practical scanning sessions on standardized patients, as well as computed simulation options. Participants completed a pre- and a two-month post-intervention identical survey, assessing confidence in five domains on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Not comfortable, 5 = Very comfortable). Due to differences in response rates (13 pre, 11 post), only matched responses (n = 11) were used for analysis. Mean score differences were calculated to assess the magnitude of change in pre- and post-workshop responses. Results Prior to the intervention, approximately half of the participants reported not being comfortable or somewhat uncomfortable with performing a basic lung exam. Specifically, 31% were not comfortable identifying A-lines and B-lines, 39% were not comfortable in recognizing pleural effusions, and over 70% lacked confidence in identifying a pneumothorax. Following the intervention, mean confidence in identifying B-lines increased from 2.31 to 3.45 on a 5-point Likert scale, as well as in recognizing pleural effusions, which showed an increase from 2.62 to 3.27. Perceived competence in performing a complete lung ultrasound rose from 2.92 to 3.00, while confidence in pneumothorax identification rose from 2.15 to 2.55. Confidence in identifying A-lines decreased from 3.15 to 3.00. Conclusions A single focused hands-on lung ultrasound workshop can improve residents’ confidence in identifying key pulmonary pathologies, highlighting the clinical value of ultrasound and focused hands-on point-of-care ultrasonography education early in residency curricula. Such interventions may enhance diagnostic readiness and promote timely patient care. Further studies correlating skill performance and patient outcomes are warranted. This abstract is funded by: None
Sarhan et al. (2026) studied this question.